Machine for scoring ice



Aug. 4, 1925. 1,548,071

, M. .1.' UL1NE ET AL MACHINE FOR` scofNG 10E Filed April 21. 1922 4 a sheetsneez 1 Aug. 4, 1925.

M. J. ULINE ET AL MACHINE FOR SCORING ICE s sheds-sheet 2 Filed April 21. 1922 Aug. 4, 1925. A 1,548,071' n f v M. J. ULINE ET AL MACHINE Fon SCORING 1cm FilledvAprl 21, 1922 v' 3 SheetSFShe-et ISy l y Patented Aug. 4, 1925.

U NI TED SA'T'I lVl1(211111311'4,v J. ULINE ANDWVILLIAMQB. :II-II'LILf,- JRJ, OF TOLEDO, OHIO; SAID` ULINE' AS'- SIGNOR TOTI-IE UDINE ICE-,SCORINGMACHINE COMPANY,I OFTWILMINGTON, DELA- WARE, A CORPORATONOF 'DELAWTARE MIACHINE FOR SCORINGv ICE;

Application ledkAprilrQl, 1922. Serial No.555,824.

Toi ,all iol/,omnia may concern.'

Be it known `that we, MioHinL J. ULiNn and VILLIAM B. HILL, J r., citizens of the United States, residing -at Toledo,A in the county of Lucas and State of Ohio, have invented a certain new and useful Improve nient in Machines for Scoring Ice, of ywhich thefollowingis a full, clear, yand exact description, reference being had to the. accompanying`l drawings.; i

Thisinvention relates toaniethod of and x machine foi' scoringor grooving blocks of icegpreparatory. to .breaking them into vpieces of giveii.size. The; purpose of suchtreatment isv to` fac-ilitate the cutting of the ice into pieces of predetermined weight at the time of delivery to theconsumer, thev scores orx grooves defining portions of the minimum weight sold, and obviously larger vide a= inachineofthe immediately fcregoing nature which is so designed and constriicted asto operate efficiently at the minimum,expenditureofheat; to provide an ice scoring machine, wherein 'steam isemplofyed as the heating mediumfor scoring tlie ice=v and wherein the draining of the condensate is se. providedfor asto make it unnecessary to shut off the steam between successive. operations; and kto provideI Van ice scoring machine wherein steam at a comparatively lowf pressure may be used effcctuall'y for scoring the ice.

Other objects are to provide a scoring machine throughwhichthe ice may move in, a constant direction, in contradistinction to,

those icefscoring machines wherein the ice enters the machine vin one direction,l isV moved therein in another direction, and may be discharged therefnomin still' another direction; to provide a machine of the aforesaid -`character which is very convene ient of use and which greatly eXpedites the scoring operation; to provide in such. a machine a stop for positioning, the block of ice in proper; relation to the scoringlmeans, and whichKA stop may be conveniently released by the operator after the ice has been scored; toprovide an ice scoring machine wherein the scoring elements are readily ad-y jiistablel to the end thati'accu-racy may be obtained in the Weight of the partsinto which the block is tobe divided; and to providel anice scoring machine wherein steam pipes or theclike constitutethe scoring elementsA and'which, through being .adjustable for the aforesaid purpose, possess no, joints which are disturbedl or likely to be loosened through ysuch an adjustment.

The foregoinggobjects, with others hereinafter appearing, are attainedl in the em-V bodiment of our invention illustrated in the drawings accompanying and forming a part,

hereof'andwherein Fig. l is a, sideleleva-y tion. of the machine; Fig. 2is a perspective view of ablock ofice. showing, in dotted lines thereon,th`ei position and arrangement ofthe scores ,or grooves produced by the machine; Fig. lisfa plan View of the machine; Fig, 4t is. aface view of one, ofthe side plates which carry the scoring blades; Fig. 5'is an elevational view ofl the inlet endof the machine; Fig. ,G is a vertical section through' one ofthe side pla-tes; Fig. 7 isanenlarged sectional detailon thev line Tf-Tof Fig.r 6'; andFig. 8 is an enlarged` fragmentary elevation of one of the corner posts, Y therewith". Y

The frame ofthe machine comprisesv a rectangular basev plate l, from ,each corner of which rises apostl 2, and an X-lshaped casting 8, havingl cross beams l'at'its ends, is applied` to the tops of the posts. The posts 2 at each end ofthe machine are arranged in opposedrelationto each other,

showing certain parts associated sie and each incorporates a guidewayV at itsf upper and ,at its lower end, and a recess 6 at its vertical center, t-h'eaxes of the guidewavs and recess being-parallel.

Fixtendinof between the corner posts on each' side -of the machine is a-sidepla-te l0 which has lugs llprojecting from its' four; corners, said lugsbeing adapted to slidev within the guideways 5 of the Vcorner posts.` Each side plate has applied to its outer face,

adjacentits ends, bearings 12within whicha shaft 15 is journaled, the shaftson-the twosides of themachine extendingbeyond the ends of the. side plates, through the recess 6 of the corner posts, and being equipped therebeyo-nd with spur gears 16 that mesh with racks 18 that are shown as incorporating brackets 19 by means of which they are attached to the corner posts. Handles 2O are applied to the shafts 15 adjacent the inlet end of the machine.

Plates close the outer sides of the guideways 5 and maintain the side plates 10 against shifting longitudinally by cooperation with the lugs 11. A rail 26 extends longitudinally of the base plate l at the transverse center thereof, and this rail constif tutes the support for the block of ice when the same is within the machine. As is well known to those familiar with the art, ice is manufactured in blocks which taper gradually from one end to the other so as to facilitate removal from the molds, and in order to support the block of ice with its central axis horizontal, the upper surface of the rail 26 is inclined gradually upwardly from the inlet toward the outlet end of the ma- 5 chine at an angle corresponding to the taper of the adjacent face of the block. A stop 28 is movably sustained adjacent the outlet end of the machine and is pivoted, at its lower end, to one branch of a bell crank 291 the other branch whereof is connected, through a rod 30, with the lever 31 of a foot pedal 32, said lever beingpivoted intermediate its ends at 33 to a stationary structure 34. The pedal 32 is situated to one side of the path of the ice, as will be seen by reference to Fig. The stop 28 is normally held elevated by a spring 35 which surrounds the rod 30 andis compressed between the adj acent end of the bell crank 29 and a guide 36 through which the rod passes. lt will be seen from this that when the foot pedal is depressed it will retract the stop 28 against the action of spring 35, the spring expanding to return the parts to their former positions upon releasing the pedal.

Extending the full length of each side plate 10, and situated on its inner face at the vertical center' thereof is a blade 40 secured through its base flange 41 and screws 42 to the side plate. A steam pipe 45, of comparatively small diameter, extends the full length o-f the blade and is secured to its edge by any suitable means, the edge being preferably grooved to a depth substantially equal to the radius of the pipe so as to properly receive and support the pipe. T-slots 46 are shown as extending from end to end of each plate 10 in parallel relation to the blade 40, and connected to the plate by bolts 47 which have their heads engaged within the T-slo-ts, are the base flanges 49 of vertically disposed blades 50, nuts 51 being applied to the outer ends of the bolts 47. Steam pipes 52 are secured within the grooved edges 53 of the blades 50 in like manner to that in which the pipe is secured to the blade 40. This is illustrated in connection with one of the blades in Fig. 7. The vertical blades 50 are arranged in pairs, the blades of the corresponding pairs aligning with each other abo-ve and below the horizontal blade 40. The pipes 52 connect at their upper ends with an inlet manifold 55, which may be supplied with steam through a flexible hose 56, and at their lower ends with a drain manifold 57 which may exhaust through a flexible hose 58. The inlet manifold 55 is shown as inclined upwardly from its middle, where it communicates with the supply hose 56, toward its ends for the obvio-us purpose of facilitating the flow of the steam; and for a similar reason the drain manifold 57 is reversely inclined from each end'to where it joins the hose 58 at its middle. One end of the tube 45 connects with the inlet manifold 55, and its other end has communicative connection with the adjacent end of the drain manifold.

To insure the block of ice being maintained upright on the rail 26, guides 60 may be provided which are shown as formed by the downturned ends of plates 61 that are supported by the top casting 3.

In the use of the machine a block of ice is shoved small end foremost into the inlet end of the machine until it is arrested by the stop 28. The operator then swings the handles 2O inwardly and downwardly imparting an inward movement to the side plates 10 by reason of the cooperation of the gears 16 with the racks 18. rlhe steam pipes 45 and 52, coming in contact with the ice, melt their way into the ice to a depth depending upon the distance of the inward travel of the side plates, thus instantly scoring the block longitudinally on each side at its vertical center, and vertically at properly spaced intervals lengthwise of the block so as to divide it into sections of given capacity. The handles 2O are then returned to their normal position causing the gears 16 to travel outwardly along the racks 18 which results in the side plates being retracted, after which the operator may depress the pedal 32 and retract the stop 28 thereby to release the ice so that it may be shoved on out through the discharge end of the machine.

The upper and lower ends of the pipes 52, between the blades 50 and the manifolds 55 and 57 are of ample length to permit an appreciable lateral adjustment of the blades 50, the blade 40 having slots 40b to allow sidewise movement of the pipes 52. This adjustment, it will be understood, is for the purpose of obtaining accuracy of weight of the sections into which the block of ice is to be divided.

Considering the scoring blades 40 and 50, attention is called to the fact that, in each lll) instance, it is the edge portion only of the bladethat is, the Vportion constituted of the pipe orv tubep-'that'performs the'scoring operation inasmuch as this is the'only portion that is heated, the' blade proper V"remaining coolfand serving purely as a support for the piper As a consequence, the heating'fluid may be allowed to flow constantly, fork regardless ofthis the cut Will be made substantially no y Wider than the diameter' of the pipe or the thickness of the blade. This would not be true if the entire blade Were heated, for obviously as the edge portion Lwould be melting its Way into the ice, the heat radiated from the body portion of the blade lwould be melting the sides ofthe cut and enlarging it laterally, caus ing an unnecessary shrinkage of ice, To avoid this extra melting, the heating fluid would probably have to be .shut off at about the instant thebladewould be engaged with the ice. Y v 'Except Where so' limited by the terms of the appended claims or the state ofthe prior art, our invention is not restricted to the use of steam as the heating medium, as obviouslyother heated fluid may be circulatedjthrou'gh the Vscoring pipes, or electrical heating elements maybe substituted forthe pipes, Without departing from the spirit of our invention.

In the present vvelldeveloped state of the electrical art, the "immediately foregoing modification of the. invention is so obvious that specific illustration is deemed unnecessary. y "i' y Having A thus described our invention whatwe claimis; v 1 l f 1. In a Amachine of the character set forth, the combination'of asupport for a block of ice', a plate supported adjacent thereto for movement toward and from ablo'ck of ice sustained by said support, a lscoring element carried. by and spaced from thel plate for engagement with the block of ice, means forheating the scoring element exclusively of the plate, and means for moving said plate asaforesaid. f 2. ln a machine of the character set forth, the combination of a support for, a block ofice, a stop for positioning a block of ice on said support, carriers arranged on opposite sides of 'said"support,'scoring elements sustained by saidv carriers infspaced relation'thereto and comprising conductors fora heating medium, means for 'moving the carriers inwardly to engage the scoring elements with the opposite sides ofthe block of ice, means for conveying aheating medium to the scoring elements, and means for retracting the aforesaid stop.

In a machine of the characterset forth, the combination of a'frame incorporating a support for a block of ice, side plates arranged on opposite sides of said support,

means for movingthe side plates toward andfrom each other, ice scoring elements carried by the side plates inl spaced relation thereto, and means for. heating the scoring elements enclusivelyof the plates.

4. In a machine ofthe character set forth,- the combination ofy a frame incorporating a support fora block of ice, sideplates arranged on opposite sides of said support, a shaft rotatably supported by leach side plate, gears carried by said shafts,4 racks supported bythe frame Wherewith the gears mesh, means for rotating the shafts thereby to movethe side plates toward and Vfrom each other, and ice scoring elements carried by the'side plates.

5. In amachine of the character set forth, the combination of a frame, a `suppoit'for a block ofgice incorporated therein, side plates arranged on opposite sides of the support, a shaft rotatably supported by each side plate, gears on theshafts, raclrs'carried by the ,frame Whereivith said l'gears mesh, lmeans for rotating. the shafts thereby to move the side plates toward and from each other, scoring elements carried by the side plates, said scoring elements consti# tuting yconductors fora heating medium, and means for conveying a heating medium to said conductors. l i

6. In a machine of the character set forth, the combination of 'a frame incorporating .f1 support for a block of ice, a carrier sus tained by the frame for movement toward 4and Vfrom a block of ice on'the support,

means'for moving the carrier, scoring lelements in the naturer of conduits, members on the carrier, one for supportingeach' of said scoring elements in spaced relation vto the carrier, an inletv manifoldmounted on the carrier and Wherewith saidV conduits communicate, and means Lor supplying heating fluid to the manifold. i 'y 7. In a machine of the character set forth the combination of a frame incorporating a support for a block of ice, carriers arranged on opposite sides of the sup-port,

mechanism for moving said carriers toward and from each `other,'scoring elementsin the nature ofconduits carried by the'car'- riers in spacedrelation tliereto,.inlet"and loutlet fzma'nifolds associated' with" each carrier and vvherewith the conduits ha'vefcomplying a heating medium to the inlet manifolds.

Y 8. In a machinev of the character set forth.L

outlet manifolds associated with each of Y the side plates and wherewith the conduits have communicative connection, and means for supplying a heating medium to the inlet manifolds.

9. In an ice scoring machine, a frame comprised of a base incorporating a support for va block of ice, posts rising from the base, there being two posts arranged in opposed relation to each other at points spaced longitudinally of the base, said posts having guideways, side plates having extensions which are slidable within said guideways, means for moving the side plates toward and from each other, and ice scoring elements carried by the side plates, said elements comprising conductors, and means for delivering a heating medium to said conductors.

10. In an ice scoring machine, a frame comprised of a base incorporating a support for a block of ice, posts rising from the base, there being two posts arranged in opposed relation to each other at points spaced longitudinally of the base, said posts having guideways, side plates having extensions which are slidable within said guideways, a shaft rotatably supported by each side plate, gears on said shafts, racks supported by the posts and wherewith the gears mesh, means for rotating the shafts to move the side plates toward and from each other', and ice scoring elements carried by the side plates, said elements comprising conductors, and means for delivering a heating medium to said conductors.

11. In a machine of the character set forth, the combination of a supporting structure incorporating a support for a block of ice, side plates slidably supported by the structure on opposite sides of the support, means for moving the side plates toward and from each other, vertically disposed scoring elements carried by the side plates, said elements consisting of pipes, an inlet manifold supported adjacent the upper edge of each side plate and wherewith the upper ends of the pipes have communicative connection, and an outlet manifold supported by each side plate adjacent its lower edge and wherewith the lower ends of the pipes communicate.

12. In a machine of the character set forth, the combination of a support for a block of ice, a plate movable toward and from a block of ice sustained by the support, means for so moving said plate, the plate having a series of substantially parallel T-slots or the equivalent thereof, a plurality of 'ice scoring` elements having base flanges engaging the plate, and means interlocking with the T-slots of the plate for securing the base flanges of the elements to the plate whereby the elements may be adjusted with respect to each other.

13. In` a machine of the character set forth, the combination of a support for a block of ice, a member movable toward and from a block of ice on the support, means for so moving said member, an ice scoring element extending longitudinally of the member, and a plurality yof ice scoring elements arranged at substantially right angles to the former element above and below the same, and means attaching certain of the second mentioned elements to the member so that they may be adjusted in a direction longitudinally of the first mentioned element.

14. In a machine of the character set forth, the combination of a sup-port for a block of ice. a member movable toward and from a block of ice on said support, a plurality of scoring elements supported by the member and adjustable with respect thereto, an inlet manifold sustained in operative relation to the member, the ice scoring elements including tubing which has communicative connection with: the manifold, the tubing being flexible and of ample length to permit of an adjustment of the elements with respect to the manifold, and means for moving the member as aforesaid.

15. In a machine of the character set forth, the combination of opposed plates having ribs, means for heating the ribs eX- clusivelyof the plates, means for supporting a block of ice between the plat-es, and means for moving the plates inwardly thereby to engage the ribs with the ice and score it.

In testimony whereof, we hereunto aflix our signatures.

MICHIEL J. ULINE.

VILLIAM B. HILL, JR.

vWitnesses f CLAUDE R. BANKER, @LGA RoDnMIoH. 

